Lots of people plan a detox after Christmas, when their body is feeling sluggish and unwell after too much food and time on the sofa over the Christmas break... But any time of year is a good time for a Money Detox if your bank balance is feeling ill and your credit card bills are rising! In a Money Detox, you aim to: hunt down and clear out the things that are poisoning your financial … [Read more...]
Articles about "Snowballing" - how to clear debt fast
"Snowballing" is the name given to method of paying off your debts as fast as possible, by paying the minimum to all except one and overpaying that one by as much as possible every month. You will also end up with a great credit record!
To find how this works, how to choose which debt to make your top priority and ideas about how you can snowball most effectively, see Debt Camel's Guide to Snowballing.
This page is an archive of all articles about Snowballing in date order.
0% credit card deals in June 2017
In June 2017, you can get a 42 month 0% balance transfer deal if you pay a hefty fee. Or you can get a 29 month deal with no fee at all! This month the top offers have got just a fraction shorter (only 1 month less for most lenders) than those available in May 2017. That isn't significant if you have expensive credit card debt - this is still a great time to refinance it. But it is interesting … [Read more...]
Consolidate debt before getting a mortgage?
A reader asked: "We went to see a mortgage adviser to check if we qualify for a mortgage. We are first time buyers, me and my husband have 4 credit cards each and loans. Because we have a lot of debt, he advised us to go to our respective banks for debt consolidation by taking up a loan each to make one payment on all our debts. He said that was the best option for now. Also in that way we … [Read more...]
4 reasons to fix credit cards payments
If you are making the minimum payment to a credit card it will probably feel as though you are only paying interest and the balance isn't going down. You aren't alone - in July 2016 new research found that over 1.4 million people in Britain have been making minimum payments for three years or more. If you are caught in this minimum payment trap, what can you do? Of course it would be best to … [Read more...]
How banks make money from 0% balance transfer deals
In 2016 there is a lot of competition to get the top spot in the credit card best buy tables. At the moment (August 2016) Virgin is top of the "longest deal" table with 41 months at 0% for a 4% fee. Tesco has a 24 months 0% offer with no fee at all. You can see the current "best buys" for balance transfers here - if you know you can clear the balance soon, then look for a zero or very low fee … [Read more...]
Which debt should I clear first?
If you are determined to pay off your debts, then you may have heard of "snowballing" - it's the approach where you pay the minimum to all of your debts except one, which you overpay by as much as possible each month. (If you can't afford to pay the minimums to your debts, snowballing isn't for you - look at A simple roadmap of debt solutions to see what your options are.) But which debt should … [Read more...]
Is it better to consolidate debt or snowball it?
A reader asked about the best way to clear debt: "I owe about 12k and my partner a bit more. We are well paid but we can't rely on the bonuses and we want to get a house as soon as possible. What do you suggest? Preferably easy as we both work long hours - please don't tell me to take sandwiches to work!" First well done on taking the decision to do something about your debts. Large debts may be … [Read more...]
Changes to Barclaycard interest rates
Over the last couple of weeks Barclaycard have been writing to their customers explaining that they are changing the way they will be setting interest rates. Here is the start of the email I received: The changes they are making At the moment, everyone with a Barclaycard has an standard interest rate for purchases and a different interest rate if you withdraw cash - you may also have a … [Read more...]
Winter is coming – for mortgages and debts
If you are a Game of Thrones fan, you will know the phrase "Winter is coming". Ominous and foreboding, it is the motto of the House of Stark. In Westeros, there can be many years of easy weather but these are always followed by a long, harsh winter. At the start of the series the "long summer" has been going on for nine years, but the signs are that the climate is about to change. In … [Read more...]
Frugal Finances or Increasing Income?
If you have a pile of debt you need to clear, is it better to increase your income or cut your expenses? Obviously either can be a big help, which is why they are both included in Debt Camel's Toolkit for Improving Your Finances. But I asked two of my favourite personal finance bloggers in Britain to write about which approach feels more important to them. Jane Clark is the blogger … [Read more...]